Clare in the time of COVID-19
In the wake of the pandemic, on 22nd March 2020, the majority of our students returned home and teaching was moved online for the first time. Over 100 staff were placed temporarily on furlough, and many others began working remotely. A few remained behind, either in permanent residence in College or performing essential maintenance duties.
BRENAN MORGAN:
HEAD PORTER
Since March, my job has been entirely focused on COVID-19. We initially focused on ensuring as many students as possible were able to get home while looking after the students staying at College. There were then a couple of months of an empty College and great weather, during which time a lot of planning went into how the College would operate in the new term. As we start to open again we are spending our time ensuring everyone at Clare is as safe as they can be.
HUBERTUS JAHN:
FELLOW
As one of two Fellows who actually lived in College throughout the lockdown, I was struck by the absence of people and sounds. In many ways, life slowed down. Memorial Court was almost completely empty, Old Court was closed, and wildlife took over in an unprecedented way. I most of all appreciated the beauty and the changing seasons of the Fellows' Garden. The tranquillity of the place, the river without punts, the regular visits of Vlad the heron, the growing kingfisher family, the reflection of the water underneath the arch of Clare bridge – there were so many moments for contemplation, for getting away from the pandemic, and for simply enjoying the beauty of the College, which often gets lost during the rush of term time.
OLIVIA TAYLOR (2018):
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT
I was one of few undergraduates that remained living in Memorial Court during the lockdown. It was isolating and meant taking each day at a time, developing coping mechanisms as I went. It was my volunteering that got me through, including helping the College by giving video tours to prospective applicants. When I really needed to clear my head, I would sit in the Fellows' Garden watching the muntjacs and taking a moment of gratitude to have been locked down in such a beautiful place.
EMMA EASTERBROOK: ASSISTANT BURSAR
It has been wonderful to see Fellows, staff, and students all working together – cleaning the Colony before lockdown, offering rooms for our larger intake of incoming freshers, and volunteering to run food and book deliveries, should we have any self-isolating students.
AISHWARYA MACHANI (2017):
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT
I was among the many students who suddenly had to vacate college in March. I left just before the UK went into lockdown, solemnly aware that I probably wouldn’t be coming back to complete my final year. In place of celebrations and drawn-out goodbyes, our time at Clare ended with digital degree certificates and a Zoom graduation.
I was lucky enough to go back over the summer though, to steal a few, quiet moments on the bridge and in the Fellows' Garden. Whilst it wasn’t the farewell I had anticipated, I appreciated the serenity and time to reflect on my three years at Clare. Even in the midst of the pandemic, I found comfort in the familiar faces, beautiful architecture and idyllic gardens. I look forward to visiting again soon when the usual hubbub of students and building work has begun.
CAMILLE CHABLOZ:
SENIOR DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
From 13th-19th July the very first Careers Week took place virtually at Clare. This initiative was created in an effort to support graduating students who were entering a very unstable job market. Over 160 alumni offered to support our students by giving advice and guidance. The scheme was very successful and all of the 40 students who took part found at least one mentor. One student writes: “I am so grateful for you finding me the two mentors.[…] The mentoring scheme really has opened doors for me, and I am immensely grateful to you for setting me up with them.” To everyone who offered their help, a huge thank you!
NAVIN RAMAKRISHNA (2015):
POSTGRADUATE STUDENT
My lab work had to be postponed, which was particularly difficult as I had just entered a period of intense experiments for the final year of my PhD. Thankfully, the lockdown time provided an opportunity to re-look at my experimental data computationally, and I was eventually granted an extension to finish up what I needed. The Fellows’ Garden also provided much needed solace in lockdown Spring, and I’m grateful to Clare for letting the students left behind responsibly enjoy the space.
ALAN LLOYD:
PORTER
You can't just chain the front gates of a place like Clare and wander off declaring it to be in lockdown: deliveries continue to arrive, boilers need servicing, alarms investigated. My days in permanent residence at Clare were spent cycling between the various College sites dealing with any number of trivial responsibilities. My main memories are of permanent fatigue – and I know it sounds dreadful - of good cheer. Those who remained in College rubbed along really well.
I remember one morning looking through a window on F staircase beyond the river towards the Avenue, when I became aware Old Court's constant creaking was not, as I'd previously believed, the movement of people but the movement of the building itself, and in that minute,
I felt a great sense of isolation and sadness: a realisation that for the first time in centuries the building was not being used for its proper purpose. Other than that, lockdown was great. Those of the Clare community still in Cambridge really pulled together.
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